The last remaining pro-Palestinian protest camp in the area, which was set up by students at Harvard University, was removed on Tuesday, bringing an end to the protest encampments that had appeared at many Massachusetts universities during the previous month. Campus encampments in the Bay State came to an end due to a number of circumstances, including police-assisted forced removal and voluntary disbandment after prearranged discussions with officials.
Here’s how events unfolded throughout the commonwealth over the previous few weeks:
Harvard
The Harvard Out of Occupied Palestine (HOOP) student-led organization staged a pro-Palestinian demonstration in Harvard Yard on April 24. The demonstration lasted for around 20 days. Administrators at Harvard announced on May 6 that they would start sending out disciplinary notices and academic consequences in an effort to persuade protesters to leave on their own. Nevertheless, students stayed in Harvard Yard for over a week before willingly breaking camp on Tuesday.
This occurred following HOOP’s agreement with the university to participate in further negotiations. In response to student protests over the Gaza War, interim president Alan Garber and dean of the department of arts and sciences Hopi Hoekstra have agreed to meet with demonstrators. In addition, the administration of the school intends to “pursue a meeting” concerning Harvard’s endowment between the students and the Corporation Committee on Shareholder Responsibility.
About 22 students were placed on involuntary leave for failing to leave the campsite, according to the Harvard Crimson. However, Garber stated he would advise specific institutions to “promptly initiate applicable reinstatement proceedings.”
MIT
Because of its duration, the vehement warnings from administrators, and the presence of counter-protestors, the pro-Palestinian protest movement at MIT was among the most intense in the area. The 20-day encampment on Kresge Lawn was organized by Scientists Against Genocide Encampment (SAGE). The group coordinated several demonstrations, some of which extended to remote locations like the Stata Center, as demonstrators retaliated against threats of discipline from university administration, including as suspensions and the cancellation of student housing.
In the wee hours of May 10, university police raided tents located on Kresge Lawn, effectively ending the protest encampment at MIT. Ten pupils were taken into custody for failing to leave the area. When the students’ arraignment date comes up in July, state attorneys said in court that they intend to drop the charges against them as long as they abide by MIT’s regulations and do not trespass on campus.
Students who disobeyed orders to leave Kresge Lawn were given “fewer than 30” temporary suspensions and disciplinary citations, according to an MIT official on Tuesday.
Tufts
Students for Justice in Palestine, a collaboration, coordinated the ten-day encampment at Tufts University. Following a meeting with Tufts president Sunil Kumar, the participating students voluntarily called off their protest. School administrators withheld information regarding the factors that motivated kids to remove their tents.
Patrick Collins, a Tufts spokesman, said, “We’re pleased that the encampment has been taken down and that the protest on the academic quad has been resolved peacefully and voluntarily.” “The protesters’ departure was not the result of an agreement with the university.”
of specifics of its last conversations with school administration, Students for Justice in Palestine remained silent as well. The group stated in an Instagram post that further information may be released at a later time and that the decision to disperse the encampment was not the outcome of discussions.
Northeastern
When many law enforcement organizations, including campus police, the Massachusetts State Police, and Boston police in riot gear raided the pro-Palestinian encampment in the early hours of Saturday, April 27, almost 100 people were taken into custody on Northeastern University’s campus.
At just two days, it was one of the shortest collegiate encampments around.
According to a university spokesperson, the decision to close the camp was influenced by a number of factors, including the presence of “professional organizers with no affiliation to Northeastern” and the reported usage of antisemitic remarks. Student protestors refuted the assertions, claiming that counterprotesters, not members of their group, were the ones using antisemitic words.
When police stormed the encampment, students who could produce a Northeastern ID were let to leave without being taken into custody; nevertheless, a spokesman stated that they would be subject to disciplinary measures.